Economics in the Commonwealth of Independent States
The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) is a regional organization for economic and political cooperation that was created in Eurasia in 1991, after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Currently the CIS has nine member states and two associate states most of which are landlocked countries in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. The member nations of the CIS are Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Meanwhile, Turkmenistan and the Ukraine are associate members of the CIS. As an umbrella organization, the Commonwealth of Independent States oversees and helps coordinate the functioning of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) between Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Russia as well as the CIS Free Trade Agreement (CISFTA), which includes EAEU members plus the Ukraine, Moldova, and Uzbekistan. This article explores the economics of one of the largest countries within the CIS, Kazakhstan.
Economics in the Commonwealth of Independent States
The Republic of Kazakhstan, located in Central Asia, has a total territory of over 2.7 million square kilometers, which is almost four times the size of Texas, making it the ninth largest country in the world. Geographically, the country is dominated by a semiarid flat steppe scattered with deserts and oases. Similarly, Kazakhstan has some mountainous formations, rivers, and a shoreline of more than 1.800 kilometers along the landlocked Caspian Sea. The country has a total population of approximately 18.4 million citizens, more than half of which live in an urban setting, notably the cities of Almaty and Astana (capital). Currently, Kazakhstan’s annual gross domestic product (GDP) is about US$460 billion. Furthermore, its national economy has experienced sluggish and even negative economic growth in recent years largely due to the drop in international commodity prices and the slowdown of the Eurasian economies. The Kazakhstani national economy is divided into 5% agriculture, 33% manufacturing, and 62% services. Meanwhile, the agriculture industry utilizes some 77% of the national territory, while another 2% is forested. Likewise, Kazakhstan’s agricultural industry employs 26% of the national labor force, while manufacturing employs about 12% and services employ another 62%.
In terms of natural resources, Kazakhstan has petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, manganese, chrome ore, nickel, cobalt, copper, lead, zinc, bauxite, gold, and uranium. Within manufacturing, the national industry is focused on oil refining, mining, phosphates & sulfur, metal & steel production, tractors & agricultural machinery, electric motors, and construction materials. Meanwhile, the country’s agricultural industry has as main products grain (mainly wheat & barley), potatoes, vegetables, melons, and livestock. In terms of trade, Kazakhstan’s main partners are Russia, China, and the European Union, notably Germany, France, Italy, and Greece. Simultaneously, land distribution in Kazakhstan has evolved throughout the last two decades. Back in 1992, permanent pastures and meadows in the country covered over 185 million hectares, while arable land covered approximately 35 million hectares and permanent crops accounted for merely 146.000 hectares. More recently, by 2014, permanent pastures and meadows had increased to 187.5 million hectares, while arable land represented little over 29 million hectares and permanent crops covered some 132.000 hectares.